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Friday, November 6, 2015 • Volume 2, Issue 45
600 turn out to discuss
Owyhee Monument
• BAKER COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS
LEND SUPPORT TO
MALHEUR COUNTY
BY EILEEN DRIVER
KERRY McQUISTEN contributing
Eileen@TheBakerCountyPress.com
A town hall meeting
on the proposed Owyhee
Canyonlands National
Monument, chaired by
Representative Cliff Bentz
of Ontario, was held on
Thursday, October 29 in
the Adrian High School
gymnasium.
The controversial monu-
ment-slash-wilderness, as
proposed, would involve
up to 2.5 million acres in
Malheur County out of the
4.6 million acres of land
there. Malheur County has
issued a resolution against
it.
Representative Bentz
and a panel of community
leaders were gathered to
hear a presentation by
Brent Fenty, Executive
Director of the Oregon
Natural Desert Association
and Owyhee Canyonlands
Coalition and to learn how
the community at large
feels about the proposition.
Just over 100 were ex-
pected to attend—around
600 individuals did, most
from Malheur and adjoin-
ing counties, most voicing
opposition to the monu-
ment.
The meeting, which was
originally scheduled to
begin 6:30 p.m. (MDT),
could not get started until
almost 7 p.m. due to the
unexpected number of
people attending, making
it a standing-room-only
event with very few places
left to stand.
Bentz started the meet-
ing off by stating, “I want
to thank you all for taking
the time to come to Adrian
for this meeting to explain
what the proposal is all
about. We need to hear
your opinions and your
presence speaks louder
than words.”
Eileen Driver / The Baker County Press
A much larger crowd than anticipated pushed back
the start of the town hall by half an hour.
SEE OWYHEE PAGE 10
A bear in there!
City, police
face federal
lawsuit
• REPORTER CLAIMS POLICE CHIEF,
OFFICERS VIOLATED HIS CIVIL RIGHTS
BY KERRY McQUISTEN
News@TheBakerCountyPress.com
“The allegations of retaliatory treatment are completely
false,” said Baker City Police Chief Wyn Lohner this
week.
Last Thursday morning, journalist Brian Addison, for-
merly of Baker City, fi led suit against the City of Baker
City, Lohner, and up to 10 as-of-yet unnamed “Doe”
offi cers from that department. Addison’s suit centers
around three claims: (1) Retaliation for First Amendment
Conduct (42 U.S.C. § 1983); (2) Tortious Interference
with Economic Relations; and (3) Defamation, and was
fi led in U.S. District Court, Pendleton Division.
Addison’s claims stem back to a situation regarding an
opinion piece critical of local police, which he penned
during his employment with The Record-Courier in 2008.
SEE LAWSUIT PAGE 5
Sunny Werner/ The Baker County Press
Cougar kills
sheep on
Goodrich
Creek
The yearling bear turned to look at photographers in an 11th street yard Sunday, as ODFW staff prepared
to tranquilize and transport the animal.
BY SUNNY WERNER
Sunny@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Baker City had an unusual trick-or-treater this year:
a young black bear came to town to see what treats the
town had to offer.
Ken Spence of 11th Street thought his dogs were
making an unusual fuss on Sunday morning. “They were
acting weird,” Spence said, “and at fi rst I thought I saw
another dog in the yard.”
He went outside to check, and realized the intruder was
a young black bear.
“He ran from the dogs, went through the corral gate,
and settled down by the horse trailer,” said Spence. “I’ve
lived here since 1977, have had deer and raccoons, but
never had a bear in the yard before!”
The bear was happily ensconced in a sheltered section
of the yard with a horse trailer behind him and trees to
shelter him from the sun when law enforcement arrived.
He appeared to have settled himself comfortably, with no
plans to move on.
Sergeant Wayne Chastain and Offi cer Daniel Pelayo
from Baker City Police Department, and Deputy Kirby
of Baker County Sheriff’s Department responded to
Spence’s call. On his way to the scene, Chastain had in-
structed the Dispatcher to contact the Oregon Department
of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) for assistance with moving
the bear safely outside of town.
SEE BEAR ON 11TH PAGE 5
Friday
Mostly sunny and cool, highs in the upper 40s.
Cool and clear at night with lows around 30.
Saturday
Mostly sunny with late increasing clouds and
seasonable. Highs near 50. Mostly cloudy at
night with a chance for showers. Lows near
freezing, chance of precipitation is 20%.
Sunday
Mostly cloudy, slight chance for rain/snow mix.
Little to no accumulation. Highs near 50, chance
of precipitation is 30%. Lows near 30.
BY KERRY McQUISTEN
News@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Sunny Werner / The Baker County Press
Offi cer Pelayo waited, in case the bear behaved
badly, keeping several curious neighbors at a safe
distance.
Your weekend weather forecast for Baker County.
Our forecast made possible by this
generous sponsor:
Offi cial weather provider for
The Baker County Press.
Six sheep were killed Sunday night, or possibly during
the wee hours of Monday morning, in what the Oregon
Department of Fish and Wildlife is attributing to a cougar
attack.
The attack, with paw prints and drag marks as evidence,
happened in a pen up Goodrich Creek, near Pine Creek
about 10 miles outside Baker City.
Earlier this year, The Baker County Press reported that
two families—David and Kathy Sherman and Dr. Eric
and Kristy Sandefur—had witnessed a large cougar in
broad daylight in that same area, which frightened horses
in the fi eld near their homes.
In total, three lambs and three ewes were killed and left
to lay. The animals were not eaten.
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
Masquerade Ball fi lls Geiser Grand
Downtown Trick-or-Treat
Brooklyn’s Glow Fun Run
County Commissioners session
Crossroads may expand
Commissioners meet with BLM
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